After watching the documentary on the policy of détente in the 1970’s, I started to see some parallels between the US extracting itself from Vietnam and the US removing itself from Afghanistan.
“Vietnamization” was the strategy used by the American government in removing their troops from Vietnam. The purpose was to get the Vietnamese to fight their own war while slowly extracting US troops. This would be done by supporting and training the Vietnamese army so that they could hold their own against the Vietcong and North Vietnamese army.
In 1973, the Paris Peace Accords were drafted. The plan was for the US troops to leave Vietnam, with Southern Vietnam being occupied by North Vietnamese troops and governed by the Saigon government. However, the Vietnamese did not want to sign the accords because if the Americans left, the Southern Vietnamese economy would completely collapse.
I connected this to the United States’ involvement with the war in Afghanistan. I don’t know all the details, but from what I’ve understood from the news, it took the US such a long time to completely pull out of Afghanistan because the Afghani army was not ready to fight on its own. If the US had just left without providing any assistance to prepare, the country would have been left in an even worse place.
I feel like these two examples in our history point to the fact that when the US gets involved in other country’s problems, those countries come to depend on the expertise/mere numbers that the American fighters supply. This makes it hard to quickly get troops in and out of foreign countries.
“Vietnamization” was the strategy used by the American government in removing their troops from Vietnam. The purpose was to get the Vietnamese to fight their own war while slowly extracting US troops. This would be done by supporting and training the Vietnamese army so that they could hold their own against the Vietcong and North Vietnamese army.
In 1973, the Paris Peace Accords were drafted. The plan was for the US troops to leave Vietnam, with Southern Vietnam being occupied by North Vietnamese troops and governed by the Saigon government. However, the Vietnamese did not want to sign the accords because if the Americans left, the Southern Vietnamese economy would completely collapse.
I connected this to the United States’ involvement with the war in Afghanistan. I don’t know all the details, but from what I’ve understood from the news, it took the US such a long time to completely pull out of Afghanistan because the Afghani army was not ready to fight on its own. If the US had just left without providing any assistance to prepare, the country would have been left in an even worse place.
I feel like these two examples in our history point to the fact that when the US gets involved in other country’s problems, those countries come to depend on the expertise/mere numbers that the American fighters supply. This makes it hard to quickly get troops in and out of foreign countries.
This is a very interesting and intellectual connection between the two wars. Good use of examples from the Vietnam conflict in order to connect to the Afghanistan War. Overall great connection. Very insightful.
ReplyDeleteI liked how you pointed out the key points in U.S. history during the 1970's. You organized the chronological order of significant events taking place, like the U.S. removal from Vietnam and Afghanistan. You details clearly show your understanding U.S. foreign policy during this time period.
ReplyDeleteI feel like Afghanistan and Vietnam are both examples of times when the US tried to act like a "global police force," but it only showed the weakness in the tactics and motives of the US army. In both cases, the US forces were outmatched in an unconventional war where they were in a position of weakness because they were in an area they didn't know and facing an enemy who hid within the general population.
ReplyDeleteI feel like Afghanistan and Vietnam are both examples of times when the US tried to act like a "global police force," but it only showed the weakness in the tactics and motives of the US army. In both cases, the US forces were outmatched in an unconventional war where they were in a position of weakness because they were in an area they didn't know and facing an enemy who hid within the general population.
ReplyDelete